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My wife and I like Bozeman. A lot. We are considering moving there in a few years, when my current job assignment (not in the US) is over. We've visited the town many times over the past 2 years.

What I am having trouble with, however, is determining what are Bozeman's worst attributes. As in, if there was a top-10 list of "what is bad about Bozeman", what would they be? Every place has its negatives, but it is difficult to find a concise list of what Bozeman's are. Perhaps it is the sprawl? The traffic? Dealing with city government? The weather? The tourists? Any and all comments would be appreciated.

In this regard, in researching Bozeman's land use guidelines, it certainly appears that if you have a house inside a Neighborhood Conservation Overlay District, making any sort of modifications or improvements to your property could be a challenging process. Does anyone have any experience with getting a Certificate of Appropriateness approved and just how difficult the relevant city officials are to work with?

Ideally, I'd like a sub-1400 square foot house in a walkable area, of which there seem to be many in the "downtown" area, but are the conservation laws so burdensome that it might be worthwhile to live outside the realm of the Conservation Overlay District? Do the HOAs (assuming that these exist) essentially replicate the same burdens (i.e., can't put up a garden shed or replace a window without prior approval)?

Lastly, is there anywhere that we should be considering as an alternative to Bozeman? As in, anywhere that is a college town that offers a good variety of outdoor activities and a decent quality of life? Anywhere that is similar to Bozeman, but (obviously) not Bozeman?